A Companys Competitiveness - Essay Example

Is the use of celebrities in marketing promotion worth the financial investment in giving a company competitive advantage? BY YOU YOUR SCHOOL INFO HERE DATE HERE TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 Introduction 1.1 Research rationale 1.2 Research aims and objectives 2.0 Literature review 2.1 The dynamics of celebrity endorsement 2.2 Consumer characteristics and behaviours 2.3 The potential risks of using celebrity endorsements in promotions 2.4 Summary 3.0 Methodology 3.1 Research approach 3.2 Data analysis 3.3 Study limitation 3.4 Ethical considerations 4.0 Study timetable 5.0 Conclusion References 1.0 Introduction In today’s global business environment, managers must consider strategies that will give a business competitive advantage and provide their respective firms with an identity and reputation that attracts desirable and profitable customer segments. As a manager, how to develop and structure operations is one of the foremost considerations that will determine a company’s competitiveness. In operations management, marketing is a primary business activity that theoretically contributes to the achievement of this competitive advantage. Far beyond the firm’s tangible resources, such as cash reserves and information technologies, managers utilize marketing promotions as an intangible resource that either makes a firm attractive to existing or prospective customers. Marketing promotions consist of efforts to communicate the total value of a service or a product for customers with the intention of increasing sales through these communications (Kotler and Keller 2009). Marketing promotions consist of advertising and publicity to achieve the objective of properly positioning a firm against competition, increasing sales, building a corporate identity and generally increase customer demand (Solomon, et al. 2006). For some managers, the problem faced in achieving competitive advantage is that their respective firms produce and distribute products that are comparable to competition. Such products have homogenous features and benefits to competitive offerings, hence when attempting to communicate product value, it becomes increasingly difficult to build incentive with customers to select one firm’s products over that of competitors. As a result, managers exploit the marketing function in operations as a means of differentiating a product from that of comparable competitor products. Differentiation is a strategic effort to create a distinguished identity for a product which makes a product appear more interesting and desirable for a company’s most sought-after customer target segments (Hitt, Ireland and Hoskisson 2014). Nandan (2005) asserts that in today’s competitive business environment, it is becoming more simplistic for competing firms to imitate and reproduce the features and benefits of a competitor’s product. With the ability of a firm to procure similar production technologies whilst also building a competent research and development team, companies that once offered unique products for consumers are being threatened with a shortened product life cycle as a result of replicated competing products being distributed. Therefore, the only legitimate asset that a firm sustains is its brand identity (Nandan). As a result, business managers begin constructing unique marketing promotions that give a product a unique personality, as it is perceived by existing or potential customers, which create appeal for the product that improves demand for the product in relation to competitor offerings. Many companies, today, are turning toward the utilisation of celebrities as a means of creating the right image and attractiveness for their products. Celebrities that either endorse the product for its potential value to customers or are just utilised as a famous figure in advertisements can theoretically differentiate a product from competing offerings. Celebrities are individuals within society that have managed to achieve social recognition that has attracted interest and attention from others in society (Gupta 2009). Famous individuals gain this prominence through their appearance in television, through the procurement of considerable wealth, or even through accomplishment in a leading sport. Any form of notoriety that sets apart a person from others in society represents celebrity status. The use of celebrity endorsements or celebrity image in promotion is theorised as being a predictor of financial profitability for a product or brand (Bush, Martin and Bush 2004). 1.1 Research rationale Using famous people as figures representing a product or brand is not without, in most instances, substantial financial investment for recruitment. The beverage brand Diet Coke and Armani have determined that the famous football celebrity, David Beckham, is worth a substantial $55,000 USD per day to recruit his product endorsements (Kandlur 2014). The American movie actor, Brad Pitt, was paid a rather monstrous wage of over $6 million USD for only one endorsement of the Chanel No.5 perfume brand (Kandlur). World-renowned singer Beyonce was also recently signed to a multiple year contract for the Pepsi beverage, which was reported as being worth $50 million USD to the corporation (Kandlur). Hence, with celebrities commanding and demanding such substantial salaries for their utilisation in a company’s promotions, the question arises as to whether these financial investments are really worth the long-term gains achieved by a firm that seeks celebrity promotional strategy. It is uncertain as to whether these endorsements are effective in creating increased customer demand for a firm’s products or enhancing revenue growth. An experienced business contributor for Forbes magazine asserts that such high investment in celebrity recruitment does not achieve the long-term advantages that companies seek through pursuing this strategy (Harrington 2014). However, Clark and Horstman (2003) found that celebrities in promotional strategy maintains the ability to enhance consumer recall regarding a product brand and built a complimentary and beneficial type of consumer favouritism toward a product as compared to competing products. With such disparity stemming from experts and researchers regarding the viability and benefits of costly celebrity endorsements being potentially lucrative for companies utilising this strategy in operations, companies have conflicting professional sentiment and statistics that are either supportive or critical of the long-term benefits of using celebrities in promotional strategy. Hence, this research project can potentially provide hard evidence that can determine whether celebrity utilisation in marketing is genuinely worth the investment or whether alternative strategies should be pursued by business managers. 1.2 Research aim and objectives The aim of this proposed research project is to investigate the relationship between enhanced product effectiveness and profitability and celebrity recruitment in corporate promotional strategy. To this end, the study has three objectives: Investigate the theoretical benefits of promotional celebrity images and endorsement in relation to customer-perceived value toward a product. Determine the potential risks of celebrity endorsement that might contribute to a lack of return-on-investment in this strategy. Investigate the specific characteristics of celebrities and consumers that may theoretically impact a product’s reputation among competitive forces. 2.0 Literature review This section of the research proposal explores empirical studies and theoretical literature regarding celebrity utilisation in promotion in order to provide positive evidence of its long-term benefits or refute that this is a viable strategy in relation to the expenditure for recruitment. The review of literature also explores dynamics of consumer behaviour and socio-psychological characteristics that may influence how a product or brand is perceived by customers when these products are accompanied with celebrity affiliation. 2.1 The dynamics of celebrity endorsement Celebrities have already gleaned the attention and interest of society as their own stand-alone brands which might theoretically give a product instant recognition when a firm affiliates their promotions with this famous individual. Keller (2008) asserts that a celebrity can be beneficial and financially valuable for a product or brand if they have one (or more) attributes and characteristics that include trustworthiness, attractiveness, a type of expertise, or general likability. To be viable, according to Keller, the attributes encompass: Trustworthiness – a socially-responsible behaviour or credibility that manages to create consumer-perceived confidence and faith toward the famous person. Attractiveness – tangible, physical good looks or general charisma that builds social allure toward the celebrity. Expertise – Specific talents or experiences toward a specific domain that is superior to the knowledge and skills of others in general society. Likability – The extent of social positive sentiment and feelings about the celebrity and the degree to which members of society enjoy their image, celebrity sentiment or discussion content. If a famous individual maintains one or more of the aforementioned characteristics, it potentially creates the foundation for justifying their utilisation in promotional strategy. Why is this? When these four characteristics embody a celebrity’s presence, the famous individual is considered to have what is referred to as stopping power, or the ability of the celebrity to draw rapid attention to advertising and communications content amidst a very saturated media environment (Zafar and Rafique 2012). 2.2 Consumer characteristics and behaviours There are many theoretical characteristics and behaviours of consumer segments that might contribute to why celebrity utilisation is an effective promotional tool. First, celebrities are considered to be aspirational individuals, meaning that these famous persons can inspire others in society or create a type of enthusiasm that non-celebrity social members cannot provide. The aspirational attributes of celebrities can create a phenomenon where celebrities become reference groups. In psychology, reference groups represent any individuals that serve as a framework for how members of society assess themselves. Reference groups become a model by which others measure their own behaviours, physical qualities, and values (Thompson and Hickey 2005). Celebrities are often perceived to sustain much more desirable or enviable characteristics or lifestyles and the psychology of human behaviour forces a phenomenon whereby other members of society seek to emulate the traits deemed aspirational in the famous person (Heany, Goldsmith and Jusoh 2005). Therefore, when a celebrity’s image or endorsement accompanies a product in promotional communications, consumers are theoretically more drawn toward this endorsed product. By being a reference group individual, celebrities often influence how a consumer frames their own sense of personal identity and values. They become a type of benchmark by which consumers evaluate their own sense of social relevance and significance. Several studies have found that consumption decision-making is influenced by aspirational reference groups in an effort to build social affiliation or a more positive sense of self-identity by consuming products that are endorsed or deemed favourable by important reference group figures (Latif, Saleem and Abideen 2011; Jiaqin, Xihao and Lee 2007). What, however, might potentially explain why reference groups are so influential in consumption decision-making. There is the belief in psychology and the social sciences which recognises a phenomenon in which consumers tend to regularly engage in making social comparisons against others. When making such comparisons, when an individual perceives that they sustain a lesser status to others, it negatively impacts one’s self-esteem, self-concept and general sensation of emotional well-being (Suls, Martin and Wheeler 2002). Taylor and Brown (1988) assert that people, inherently, have a desire to believe they are superior to others. Hence, because celebrities maintain aspirational characteristics that supersede members of general society, when an individual feels they have moulded their values, lifestyles, and general characteristics with the celebrity, they have attained a superior social status to others. Through consumption of a product affiliated with an aspirational celebrity, it can theoretically enhance well-being and self-esteem of the consumer as compared to products without such celebrity relationship. When a product becomes connected with a desirable celebrity, the product can be perceived as being glamorous, enchanting and sophisticated (Escalas and Bettman 2005). Furthermore, consumers are theoretically more drawn toward a brand that utilises aspirational celebrities as consumption of the affiliated product can assist the buyer in building a more ideal sense of self. Dittmar (2008) refers to this as achieving the body perfect, or the ability of a consumer to create a more attractive physical condition. Products that utilise attractive celebrities in promotion as the famous persons’ physical beauty creates a psychological response about the achievement of an ideal sense of self image. Through consumption of this celebrity-affiliated product, consumers perceive a greater sense of social relevancy and believe that some products can transform them to be more attractive as compared to the beautiful celebrity (common in such products as cosmetics that utilise celebrities). Abdallat (2012) supports this, suggesting that positive attitudes toward a brand are produced when celebrities have physical characteristics that are aligned with a consumers’ sense of ideal self. The aforementioned phenomenon is recognised with consumers that are drawn toward consumption of cosmetic and other beauty products. Advertising media often serves as a reference entity through which customers measure and critique their own physical appearance. Such media becomes a framework by which female customers’ body image is evaluated (Grogan 1999). When buyers perceive that a certain product affiliated with a celebrity can provide personal self-improvement, they are more likely to illustrate loyalty toward this brand and find personal happiness in their lifestyles as a result of buying a particular product (Greenwald, et al. 2002). From a different perspective, Zhang and Chan (2009) state that when consumers perceive that a product or brand is directly aligned with their own values or lifestyles, customers tend to build potent emotional affection and connection to the product. More positive attitudes are built toward the product when the self and the brand are perceived as congruent (Escalas and Bettman 2005). This might explain why some celebrity-based promotions and endorsements are potentially effective in building customer demand and improving revenues. This phenomenon can be illustrated with sports celebrities utilised in marketing promotions. In the country of India, as a relevant example, cricket is a national obsession and athletes that excel in this sport are utilised as the dominant celebrity marketing ideology (Prakash and Shamala 2014). Famous cricket players are deemed to be aspirational, especially with Indian youth markets, and consumption is consistently influenced by cricket athlete endorsements. Cricket, as a dominant recreational activity in India, links personal consumer lifestyle with the aspirational celebrity, hence increasing revenues for a variety of products that utilise these famous athletes’ images and endorsements. For some markets in India, cricket athletes are viewed as role models hence their affiliation and endorsements give more instant credibility toward the product being advertised (Prakash and Shamala). Therefore, it would appear that when companies utilise celebrities that have characteristics which are directly aligned to desirable lifestyle attributes of consumers, they will be more willing to exhibit strong emotional connections to the product and seek future consumption of these products. This may explain, theoretically, why such endorsements such as those stemming from Britain’s famous football player, David Beckham, transcend only the sale of sports merchandise, but also upscale fashion merchandise and even mobile communications technologies. Consumers who engage in football as a desirable lifestyle recreational activity might find credibility in Beckham’s endorsements, thus improving current and future revenues. 2.3 The potential risks of using celebrity endorsements in promotions Whilst, thus far, the literature has been supportive that celebrity endorsements are worth the initial recruitment investments, there is some evidence that it might be a risky venture for managers that desire to pursue this strategy. As indicated by Keller (2008), for celebrity endorsements to be effective, a celebrity must maintain a blend of expertise, likability, trustworthiness and attractiveness. Therefore, the consumer-perceived image of the famous person should theoretically be positive in order for a celebrity-affiliated product to have consumer-perceived superior value and achieve high profitability (Gwinner and Bennett 2008). As such, it would stand to reason that a business seeking recruitment of a celebrity or currently utilising their affiliation must be considerate of the sustainability of such a reputation. There have been many instances in which celebrities have become embroiled in some type of negative publicity or scandal that has tarnished their social identities. There have been case studies in which certain sports athletes have been accused with consuming steroids as a means of enhancing their athletic performance, which quickly changed consumer sentiment about their reputation and identity. When such a celebrity becomes embroiled in negative media exposure, there is a direct relationship in reduced profit opportunities for the product endorsed by this scandalous celebrity (White, Goodard and Wilbur 2009). When utilising a celebrity, companies do not have direct control over the lifestyle decision-making of celebrities and cannot dictate how the celebrity should illustrate moral integrity. A situation occurred in the year 2009 involving the famous golfer, Tiger Woods, who became embroiled in a scandal involving marital infidelity. Historically, Woods had been recognised the world over for having a strong moral compass and ethical value system which provided the superior golfer with many high-priced product endorsements. Woods, after negative publicity spotlighted these incidents of alleged adultery, his reputation in society was quickly reversed. As a result, his major sponsors such as AT&T and Gillette negated his contracts and quickly removed their products from affiliation with Woods (Sports Marketing Association 2010). Consumer surveys, post-scandal, illustrated a substantial lack of trust in Tiger Woods and companies gathered quantitative statistics showing decreased consumer demand in affiliated products. Offered Grant and Perman (2012), two sporting contributors at the Los Angeles Daily Journal, all great celebrity endorsements consistently face the potential abyss of bust. Faced with metrics illustrating a drop in celebrity-affiliated product income and consumer sentiment that strongly criticised Woods’ credibility and trustworthiness, sponsor companies immediately pulled their endorsement contracts. One specific company that has experienced brand reputation erosion as a direct result of celebrity negative publicity, post-endorsement, is the Pepsi Company that had created celebrity advertising using Michael Jackson, Madonna and the boxing champion Mike Tyson (Nelson, Tunji and Gloria 2012). At the time of the launch of Madonna’s endorsement of the Pepsi beverage, the singer had released her Like a Prayer video which had created social controversy regarding the video’s images of the singer engaged in provocative, sexually-suggestive behaviours with an African American and kisses the statue of a patron Catholic saint (Bego 1992). Pepsi, at first, was unaffected by this publicity until numerous international protests from general society and religious organisations called for Madonna’s public chastisement. This situation led to Pepsi pulling the endorsement contract and refusing sponsorship of future concerts. An influential Catholic bishop in the United States even publicly called for mass boycott of Pepsi and its other holdings including Pizza Hut and Kentucky Fried Chicken as retaliation for Pepsi’s affiliation with the controversial singer (Bego). Hence, this would point toward a potential recurring set of risks about the reputation and identity of recruited celebrities for many companies that do not have direct control over the behaviours of the endorser as it pertains to non-endorsement-related activities. Companies such as Pepsi Company cannot afford to have their products negatively-chastised by influential social figures as a result of affiliations with individuals who engage in what is perceived by society as being scandalous or controversial. For multi-million Pound contracts backing such relationships with celebrities, which often cannot be repealed, such as the situation in the case of Madonna who was allowed, by law, to retain her whopping $5 million USD advance, the return on investment for celebrity promotions in the face of scandal could be monumental to companies without the type of financial resources as the multi-national Pepsi. From a different perspective, there is a risk that celebrities can eclipse their affiliated product, hence not providing superior competitiveness for the product, but allowing the celebrity to outperform the product’s reputation and identity (Ericsson and Hakansson 2005). A celebrity can be so socially influential and maintain superstar status and significant media following and fan following that every minutiae of their lives are over-examined and applauded. Hence, consumers, when exposed to endorsements or other relevant advertising using these individuals, will only theoretically be interested and pay attention to the celebrity, themselves, without necessarily recalling the product the famous person is endorsing. This is known as the vampire effect. The famous American singer Celine Dion was recruited by Chrysler to endorse their new Pacifica automobile. However, the endorsement only led to higher album sales for Dion without any measurable impact on Pacifica car sales (Khatri 2006). An additional study using a sampling of consumers found that when consumers were asked to link one particular celebrity with their endorsed product, a substantial 80 percent of all respondents could only remember the celebrity and not the affiliated product (Khatri). Hence, the vampire effect could potentially be a liability for companies seeking a celebrity endorsement strategy to give a product competitive advantage. Scandals, controversies and other negative media portrayal of famous affiliated celebrities could become a potential liability for certain products and brand reputations. At the same time, based on the case of Celine Dion and her inability to improve customer interest in the Pacifica car brand, but only enhance her own record sales, would point toward companies potentially requiring a more careful assessment of what famous person is being recruited if they are to achieve a positive return-on-investment for celebrity-based promotions. 2.4 Summary This section identified attributes of consumer behaviour that might become a predictor of enhanced value for a product, improved demand and consumer emotional attachment, and revenue growth. Furthermore, the literature review found that celebrity characteristics and aspirational attributes might be positive benefits of product affiliation and provide long-term loyalties and attachment toward the celebrity-promoted product or brand. Research shows that companies utilising celebrities, on average, achieve a four percent increase in sales when affiliating a product with a famous person in advertisement (Elberse and Verleun 2011). For major companies, such as Pepsi and Chrysler, that sell many different products or sell high-cost products, a four percent increase in revenues is substantial. For companies without the ability to produce substantial revenues (such as the medium-sized enterprise), a four percent average increase is rather insignificant and may not necessarily offset the expenditure required to recruit a famous individual for promotional affiliation. However, in an environment where companies face the vampire effect risk or reputational risk of celebrities, there might be conflict in the long-term viability of this strategy as it pertains to sustaining a product’s long-term reputation and identity among competitive products. Based on all research in this section, the study constructs four workable hypotheses: H1: If consumers maintain a positive attitude and sentiment about celebrities, the celebrity-endorsed product will be viewed more favourably by the consumer. H2: Celebrity scandals and negative media publicity that occur during or after an endorsement contract will produce a negative impact on consumer-perceived brand credibility and endorsed product profitability. H3: High-profile celebrities can overshadow a brand, negatively impacting consumer recall of the product and predict insufficient increases in revenue for the endorsed brand. H4: When consumers perceive the celebrity as being a model of the ideal sense of self, they will have stronger emotional attachments to the endorsed product or brand. 3.0 Methodology This section of the proposed research justifies the creation of a primary study using human participants in order to provide valuable evidence as to whether celebrity endorsements are worth the financial investment necessary to gain this affiliation through advertising promotion. 3.1 Research approach This study requires a mixed methodological approach in order to provide valid data necessary to determine whether celebrity-based promotions are worth the investment for managers seeking the strategy. Firstly, it is necessary to glean quantitative data that can illustrate, statistically, how consumers respond toward a celebrity-based product or brand and how consumers perceive the specific celebrities that endorse the brand. Additionally, much of consumer attitude, emotion and opinion is based on complex socio-psychological behaviours and characteristics that influence decision-making about celebrities and products. Henerson, et al. (1987) assert that attitudes are so multi-faceted that they cannot be measured scientifically. Therefore, the study required a blend of quantitative and qualitative research in order to fully understand the complex dynamics of emotion and attitude that drives consumption decision-making and sentiment about a competitive product brand. The study entails procuring images of six famous celebrities with varying social influence and prominence as well as reputational status. Concurrently, the researcher will conduct research into the different product brands that have been endorsed by these identified celebrities. Once the celebrities and their respective endorsement brands have been secured, the researcher will reproduce images of the celebrity and their associated products which can be exhibited to a selected sample of consumers for review and evaluation. The researcher will select an ad hoc recruitment strategy, targeting a sampling of random consumers with varying demographics who will be approached outside of a regional commercial centre. The ad hoc recruitment strategy is relevant as there is no research data indicating that specific genders or demographic characteristics maintain specific attitudes or attributes that will predict a response to a brand and its associated celebrity. Hence, the ad hoc strategy will gain perspectives from a very diverse group of consumers with varying attitudes, lifestyles and general demographics. The sample population will consist of participation from between 40 and 50 consumers. Once recruited, the respondents will be shown images of the six selected celebrities and their six respective products which have been endorsed or otherwise affiliated with the famous individual. Once examined, the respondents will be asked to match the relevant celebrity with their endorsed products. The researcher will record responses, whether correct or incorrect, using general field notes. Additionally, the sample group will be asked about their current consumption patterns related to each product. The participants will be asked to rate their like or dislike of a product using a survey instrument with a Likert-type scale with a 1-5 ranking criteria, where 1 = not at all, 3 = a neutral position, and 5 = very much. After recording responses from each participant, the researcher will again have the respondents examine the images of the celebrities who will be asked to rate their overall opinion based on the criteria of trustworthiness, likability, attractiveness and expertise of each celebrity, to give their perceptions of the celebrity based on the four criteria iterated by Keller (2008) as being necessary for effectiveness of a celebrity endorsement. The justification of this approach is to measure whether there is congruency or disparity related to the sentiment of the celebrity and the overall perception of the product they have endorsed. For instance, if one of the chosen celebrities utilised in the study have been involved in a widely-recognised scandal or controversy, the study can illustrate whether consumers have adopted negative perceptions about the product as a result; or whether they sustain similar positive perspectives of the product and celebrity in equal proportion. The next phase of research, the qualitative approach conducted after collecting survey data, will consist of a very brief interview with the participants that responded to the survey. The brief interview will consist of a handful of questions about the celebrity in relation to the ideal self, consumers view of each celebrity’s role as a reference group figure, and the extent to which each celebrity is perceived as being relevant to the participants’ personal lifestyle, values and attitudes. This approach is intended to gain valuable socio-psychological opinion and emotion in regards to the celebrity and the relationship with the consumer self. All congruencies or disparities will be analysed in order to make a valid determination as to whether endorsements are worth the investment or whether managers might wish to seek alternative strategies to gain competitive advantage. 3.2 Data analysis Post-study, the researcher will utilise basic word processing software to record all participant responses, those ranked between 1 and 5, using a table format. This same table will compare each response for the exhibited celebrity and the exhibited product they have endorsed, providing ease of analysis as to whether there are congruencies or disparities related to consumer sentiment of both. The researcher will then evaluate responses gleaned from the brief interview to determine whether there was more positive interest and sentiment toward the celebrity or the product as a result of their lifestyles, perspective of idealised characteristics of the celebrity, and how the celebrity is viewed as being a personal reference figure. 3.3 Study limitation This study would benefit from a more longitudinal study, consisting of several focus groups that allowed for the production of more in-depth, qualitative data. By engaging consumers more intensively in terms of lifestyle, the ideal self, self-image, consumption perspectives about certain products endorsed by celebrities and the role of social figures in influencing consumption, the study could better understand the complexities of human emotion and attitude that drives ultimate consumption decisions. However, timeline for completion of the study as well as researcher resources forbid utilising the focus group approach as a viable method of exploring the multi-faceted aspects of human behaviour and socio-psychological influences that drive a product purchase decision. 3.4 Ethical considerations Participants will be granted anonymity in order to ensure privacy and will be informed that their demographic data and names will not be utilised in the final published study. Most primary, however, is the approach that the researcher must undertake to ensure that responses from the recruited sample are not biased or influenced. The researcher will inform participants that the study’s intention is to provide business leaders with data regarding how to build more effective celebrity endorsements. If the researcher allows consumers to infer that the intention is to directly correlate the product exhibited with the products’ respective endorsers, it may influence response quality. This justifies allowing the customers to rank the product prior to realising they are ranking the celebrities as well. Researchers should be frank and forthright about the intention of a study using human participants, however, to ensure the validity of responses, it is necessary to obscure the true intention of the study to ensure objective responses from the recruited sample group. 4.0 Research timetable Activity Description 10 May 14 May 18 May 24 May 29 May 6 June 7 June 18 June 19 June 10 July 20 July 10 Aug Search for relevant celebrity and product images for exhibition   Complete survey and interview template for utilization in study   Complete research plan and methodology for approaching the ad hoc sample   Conduct primary research                         Begin evaluation and analysis of all returned research instruments   Begin constructing final project                       Submit raw chapters for tutor evaluation and suggestions                       Revise draft       Submit final project               5.0 Conclusion With such a need in today’s business world to differentiate a product that has comparable benefits and features to competing products, there is much more emphasis on the marketing functions of operations as a means of better positioning a business and providing competitive advantage. 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